2015 Louisiana Laws
Revised Statutes
TITLE 11 - Consolidated Public Retirement
RS 11:441.1 - Early Retirement and Payroll Reduction Act of 2006

§441.1. Early Retirement and Payroll Reduction Act of 2006

A. Purpose. This Section shall be known as the Early Retirement and Payroll Reduction Act of 2006. Its purpose is to permanently reduce the number of state employees, thereby reducing payroll costs, in a manner which furthers the fiscal soundness of the state and which is fair and equitable to the employees of the state. The Act is intended to accomplish this purpose by encouraging voluntary early retirement by the temporary reduction of retirement eligibility requirements and by restricting the hiring of new employees.

B. Eligibility Requirements for Early Retirement. Any member of the Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System may retire pursuant to the provisions of this Section, and he shall receive the benefits set forth in Subsection C of this Section if he submits an application for retirement during the period beginning January 1, 2007, and extending through December 31, 2008, with the effective date of his retirement occurring during that same period and further provided that on or before December 31, 2008, he has attained at least age fifty and has at least ten years of service credited to his retirement account, exclusive of any military service credit.

C. Retirement Benefits. Any person who retires pursuant to the provisions of this Section shall receive an annual retirement allowance consisting of an actuarially reduced benefit. The annual benefit shall be calculated in accordance with the provisions of R.S. 11:444(A). However, the benefit of any such person shall be actuarially reduced to account for early retirement. In no event shall the annual retirement allowance exceed one hundred percent of average compensation as specified by R.S. 11:231. Any person who retires pursuant to the provisions of this Section shall not be eligible to participate in the Deferred Retirement Option Plan or the Initial Benefit Option as set forth in R.S. 11:446(A)(5).

D. Application of Other Early Retirement Provisions. If any person is eligible for early retirement under the provisions of this Section or under the early retirement provisions of R.S. 11:441(A)(1)(d), such person may retire under the applicable provision; however, the restrictions on refilling employee positions as set forth in Subsection E of this Section shall also apply to positions vacated by early retirement under R.S. 11:441(A)(1)(d) during the period beginning on January 1, 2007, and extending through December 31, 2008. Any such person who retires pursuant to the provisions of this Section or pursuant to the provisions of R.S. 11:441(A)(1)(d) shall not be eligible for reemployment by the state of Louisiana or any agency thereof for a period of two years from the date of such retirement.

E. Restrictions on Employee Positions and Payroll.

(1) It is the intention of this Act to effect a permanent and substantial reduction in the number of state employees and in the state payroll. Accordingly, any position which becomes vacant as a result of a person's retirement pursuant to the provisions of this Section, including positions vacated by early retirement under R.S. 11:441(A)(1)(d) during the period beginning on January 1, 2007, and extending through December 31, 2008, shall be abolished and shall only be reestablished upon the authorization, jointly by the commissioner of administration and the director of the Department of State Civil Service with respect to the executive branch, the Legislative Budgetary Control Council with respect to the legislative branch, or the Judicial Budgetary Control Board with respect to the judicial branch. In no event shall more than ten percent of the positions in each respective branch of state government which have become vacated as a result of retirements made pursuant to the provisions of this Section, including positions vacated by early retirement under R.S. 11:441(A)(1)(d), be reestablished over any five-year period. In addition, no more than one-third of the positions abolished pursuant to this Section in each branch of state government in any one fiscal year may be reestablished during that fiscal year.

(2) The limitations set forth in Paragraph (1) of this Subsection shall be inapplicable with respect to specific individual cases whenever, as to the executive branch of state government, either the commissioner of administration or the governor act together with the director of the Department of State Civil Service to certify jointly that an emergency need exists; as to the legislative branch of state government, the Legislative Budgetary Control Council certifies that an emergency need exists and such need is also so certified and approved jointly by the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of Representatives; and as to the judicial branch of state government, the Judicial Budgetary Control Board certifies that an emergency need exists and such need is also certified and approved by the chief justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court.

(3) Positions which are reestablished shall be filled only by appointment of existing employees from within the same agency whenever such agency has qualified personnel to fill such positions. Positions becoming vacant by such appointment of existing employees shall be abolished, subject to the same reestablishment conditions.

(4) Whenever a position is abolished, the appointing authority of the agency in which the position is funded shall notify the state treasurer of the unspent portion of state general funds appropriated to pay for that position. The state treasurer shall withhold from that agency's state general fund appropriation an amount equal to the unspent state general fund appropriation, including employer retirement contributions, for the position abolished. If the position is reestablished, the state treasurer shall return to the agency's state general fund appropriation an amount sufficient to pay for the position from the date of reestablishment to the end of the fiscal year in the proportion and to the extent the position is to be funded from the state general fund.

(5) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, no position which is vacated as a result of retirement pursuant to the provisions of this Section or of R.S. 11:441(A)(1)(d) during the period beginning on January 1, 2007, and extending through December 31, 2008, shall be filled by the state of Louisiana unless such position is reestablished as provided in this Subsection and such hiring is authorized:

(a) Jointly by the commissioner of administration and the director of the Department of State Civil Service with respect to the executive branch of state government. The commissioner of administration shall provide the initial approval.

(b) By the Legislative Budgetary Control Council with respect to the legislative branch of state government.

(c) By the Judicial Budgetary Control Board with respect to the judicial branch of state government.

F. Notwithstanding any other provision of law or of this Section to the contrary, the provisions of this Section which eliminate vacated positions shall not be applicable to any positions of the Department of Children and Family Services, office of children and family services, child support enforcement section; or to Department of Public Safety and Corrections security officers or probation and parole officers; or to any positions of the LSU health care services division.

G.(1) Except as provided in Paragraph (2) of this Subsection, the provisions of the Early Retirement and Payroll Reduction Act of 2001 (Act No. 844 of the 2001 Regular Session of the Legislature) and the Early Retirement and Payroll Reduction Act of 2004 (Act. No. 194 of the 2004 Regular Session of the Legislature) are not affected by this Section and the provisions of those Acts and particularly Section 5 thereof, remain in effect.

(2) The provisions of Subsection D of this Section and of Section 4 of the Early Retirement and Payroll Reduction Act of 2004 which prohibit any person retiring pursuant to the provisions thereof or of R.S. 11:441(A)(1)(d) from being reemployed by the state of Louisiana or any agency thereof for a period of two years from the date of his retirement shall not apply to any person retiring on or after August 31, 2005, and on or before June 30, 2006, and whose last employment making him eligible for system membership was with the state or an agency thereof located in a parish designated under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act as eligible for individual assistance, or individual assistance and public assistance following Hurricane Katrina or Rita.

H. It is the express intent of the legislature in enacting this Act that the provisions of Subsection E are severable from the remaining Subsections of this Section. Further, it is the intent of the legislature in enacting this Section that any declaration, legal opinion, or court ruling declaring Subsection E of this Section unconstitutional shall not in and of itself cause the remaining Subsections to be deemed void, unenforceable, or unconstitutional.

Acts 2006, No. 672, §1, eff. June 29, 2006; Acts 2007, No. 252, §1, eff. July 1, 2007; Acts 2012, No. 255, §3.

NOTE: See also Acts 2001, No. 844 and Acts 2004, No. 194 for similar provisions applicable to earlier time periods and for prohibitions (which remain effective) on filling of positions vacated pursuant thereto.